Carbon Budget
A carbon budget, emissions budget, emissions quota, or allowable emissions, is an upper limit of total carbon dioxide emissions associated with remaining below a specific global average temperature. An emissions budget may also be associated with objectives for other related climate variables, such as radiative forcing. Global emissions budgets are calculated according to historical cumulative emissions from fossil fuel combustion, industrial processes, and land-use change, but vary according to the global temperature target that is chosen, the probability of staying below that target, and the emission of other non-CO₂ greenhouse gases. Global emissions budgets can be further divided into national emissions budgets, so that countries can set specific climate mitigation goals. Emissions budgets are relevant to climate change mitigation because they indicate a finite amount of carbon dioxide that can be emitted over time, before resulting in dangerous levels of global warming.
